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Thames Water, the UK's biggest water company, does not expect to pay any more corporation tax for up to a decade, it said, as an above-inflation rise in bills saw its profits rise by nearly a fifth.

Thames Water to defer liability tax Credit: Thames Water

The firm says its infrastructure investments of £1 billion a year over the next seven to 10 years mean it will be able to defer £20 million a year in tax liabilities.

The firm, which is at loggerheads with regulator Ofwat over customer charges, has already built up a deferred tax bill of £855.6 million and its latest plans will see this rise to more than £1 billion.

There's evidence that Thames Water's attempts to add 490 million pounds to its customers' water bills has badly backfired. The industry regulator, Ofwat, has refused permission for the rise - and we've learned that the firm could now face a "clawback" of money it has already taken.

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Thames Water say its impossible to generalise about whether a family will be better or worse off on a meter Credit: Chris Radburn/PA Archive

Thames Water say its not possible to generalise about whether a family would be better or worse off on a meter.

The company says that customers won't be moved on to a metered account until two years after the new system has been activated. During that time they will still be able to monitor their usage on a daily basis and get price comparison bills before switch-over.

Thames Water want 100% of its customers to be on meters by 2030 Credit: Ian Nicholson/PA Wire

Around 30% of Thames Water customers are on meters and the company wants that to be 100% by 2030, starting in Bexley.

Thames Water says it hopes the scheme will encourage its customers to be more water-efficient. It says the new technology allows customers to monitor what they use and research shows metered customers tend to use water more sparingly.

It says London has less rainfall than Istanbul, only half as much as Sydney, yet one of the highest individual levels of water consumption in the UK.